Wednesday, 2 January 2013

Top Healthy companys 2012!

Do you work for a "Healthy Company"? Are you looking for a "Healthy company" to work for in 2013? I researched for you and found the top "Healthy companys" of 2012!

Healthy employees are typically happy ones—not to
mention they can save their company a bundle on medical costs. Research
from Harvard University also shows that workplace fitness helps chip
away at absenteeism, increases productivity, and reduces turnover.
Given all that, it’s no surprise that corporations are redoubling their
efforts to keep their workforce fit. With sparkling on-site fitness facilities, reward programs for physical activity, and group exercise outings.

This is an excellent system for travel! I take it on every trip!!

Goggle

The search for the best fitness perks on the planet ends at Goggle, Named Fortune
magazine’s top company to work for in 2011, the internet giant’s
Mountain View, CA, headquarters is home to an outdoor sports complex
that includes a soccer field, basketball court, tennis and bocce ball
courts, a putting green, horseshoe pits, and a roller hockey rink.
Inside the Googleplex, employees have access to a bowling alley and dance
studio. Bay Area Googlers can be found tinkering with algorithms from
behind ergonomic standing workstations, and when lunchtime rolls around,
techies fill up on healthy gourmet fare from one of 28 on-site
cafes—for free.

SAS INSTITUTE (10,000 employees) Cary, N.C.
Designing computer-program languages can be dry. Perhaps that’s why
this privately owned company does everything it can to keep its workers
happy. For starters, the company’s headquarters offers a
58,000-square-foot fitness center equipped with a full weight room,
Nautilus equipment, cardio and aerobics rooms, racquetball courts, a
swimming pool, and pool tables. Outside, the campus also houses soccer,
softball, and Frisbee fields; tennis courts; jogging and biking trails
(where the company hosts its own version of Tour de France, dubbed the
Tour de SAS); plus a putting green, a track, and horseshoe pits. For
participating in one of the company’s many fitness programs, employees can earn gifts— ensuring that some 70% of the SAS workforce uses the
fitness center regularly. The company also sponsors employee whitewater-
rafting trips, a fishing rodeo, a golf tourney, and ski trips (to get
slope-ready, there’s on-site ski conditioning and ski-training workshops
at lunchtime). If that weren’t enough, break rooms are always
well-stocked with snacks, and the company is well-known for perks like
“Free Fruit Mondays,” “M&M Wednesdays,” and “Free Breakfast
Fridays.”

NetApp

Dedicating a full workday to developing innovative
data and storage management solutions entitles you to some serious
playtime. At Net App's Sunnyvale, CA, headquarters a fitness complex takes up nearly the
entire first floor of one of its buildings and provides more than 30
fitness classes a week as well as a full-size basketball court.
Elsewhere on campus employees can enjoy ping-pong, billiards, and sand
volleyball.

Brooks Sports

At Brooks, company culture revolves around running. The Bothell, WA-based performance gear
maker offers its employees free and discounted race entry fees, and
employees are encouraged to run daily, often participating in group
runs. Brooks is home to an on-site gym that offers cross-training
classes, like yoga. But what really keeps workers going are “Friday
Runs,” employee runs that start at 3:30 p.m. and end with a themed
party. Yes, toga and ’80s parties have been on the agenda.

TRX

It’s a tough job designing fitness gadgets that transform a door into a home gym,
but somebody’s gotta do it. The masterminds behind the TRX Suspension
Trainer spend their days testing and working out with strength training
straps in a state-of-the-art fitness center. To thank their hard working
employees, San Francisco-based TRX offers free body composition analyses, free personal trainers, and race
stipends. And because an exercise profession is bound to make you
hungry, fresh fruit arrives at the office each morning while raw almonds
and energy bars are stocked in company kitchens. This is a great system for travel as well as an excellent addition to your home gym. I use mine while traveling.

ASTRAZENECA (13,000 U.S. employees) Wilmington, Del.
Inspired to make a beneficial change in its employees’ lives, this
pharmaceutical giant decided to roll out a unique incentive program.
Workers can earn points for everything from going to the gym to attending online health seminars on topics such as stress
management, nutrition, and fitness. Those points can then be used for
running shoes and treadmills—even massage chairs, plasma TVs, and
vacation packages. So far, an impressive 65% of employees have enrolled
in the program. To ensure that fitness stays a part of the workday, the
company also recently created indoor walking paths throughout its
mile-long headquarters, so employees can still get power walks in during
inclement weather. “We are now a company where you see everyone in
running shoes,” says executive health and safety director Joe Henry.
Next up: Having already revamped vending machines to include more
healthy food choices, the company is working on the cafeteria, trying to
draft a sliding price scale for food, with the healthiest options also
being the cheapest (a salad, for instance, would cost less than that
bacon cheeseburger and fries).

Chesapeake Energy Corporation

At Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy Corporation,
the second largest producer of natural gas in the US, health and
fitness are part of the corporate culture. Company headquarters house a
72,000 square-foot fitness facility, which includes a junior
Olympic-sized pool, rock climbing wall, cardio, weight and cycling rooms, and basketball and racquetball courts. Through a corporate
wellness program, employees can earn up to $1,500 each year for living
healthy lifestyles. An employee gardening program and “keep fit” classes
including scuba diving and archery are some of the additional benefits
offered.

Fuse

The Vermont-based marketing agency prides itself on keeping up with youth culture, so it’s no surprise
that the company’s fitness vibe falls along those lines. In fact, a
skateboard halfpipe, basketball hoop, and bike repair
station can be found inside the office and employees can grab stand-up paddle boards to use on the Winooski River during their lunch breaks.
Workers are offered season passes to ski and snowboard areas in Vermont
and bond during group outings, like snowshoe walks and white water
rafting trips.

Title Nine

A mini gym sits smack-dab in the middle of the California corporate office of this sportswear company,
where an instructor leads fitness classes several times a week. But the
opportunities to stay fit don’t stop there. Each year, everyone from
corporate employees to retail associates to warehouse workers
participate in a fitness challenge. In the past Title Nine has taken on Tough Mudders,
century bike rides, and even a marathon. Throughout the year Title
Niners also participate in smaller challenges (think wall sits), which
they call “feats of strength.” And all warehouse workers wear pedometers
and can work off demerit points by logging more miles on foot. Love that idea!

Lululemon Athletica

We all know this athletic apparel company! It helps it's employees
put their health first by offering complimentary fitness classes at
local stores and its Vancouver offices. Throughout the year, Lululemon staffers
have the opportunity to participate in active outings such as
snowshoeing and hiking. The goal-oriented organization also has staffers
set health goals along with personal and professional ones.

SAS Institute

Employees at this North Carolina- based software company stay active through a variety of intramural sports—everything from
billiards and racquetball to soccer and softball—as well as a
complimentary membership to the on-site Recreation & Fitness Center
(RFC). SAS staffers also benefit from the fitness-based incentives.
Employees and their families can earn rewards by logging their runs,
exercising weekly, or joining a team. After they complete a program,
participants receive “RFC Dollars,” which they can redeem for items like
clothing, gift certificates, and RFC services (such as massage
therapy).

FOWLER WHITE BOGGS BANKER (600 employees) Florida
After the American Heart Association challenged corporate America to
get its employees moving, company-sponsored walking programs became all
the rage. But the law firm of Fowler White Boggs Banker took things a
step further—several steps, in fact. First, it armed each employee with a
custom-built pedometer emblazoned with the firm’s name. Then, it
challenged them to take at least 1,084 steps every day (one for each of
the miles between the firm’s eight Florida offices). Today, more than
half of the company’s employees are participating in its Start! Walking
program, with each office competing to outstep the other.

Qwiki

The San Francisco tech start up makes fitness a
no-brainer for its employees. The company buys bikes for workers who
want to ride to the offices, reimburses gym memberships, and encourages
employees to embark on adventurous outings, such as rock climbing.

Specialized Bicycle Components

Twenty-mile lunchtime rides—which are sometimes joined by local pros—are a mainstay at this cycling company.
While they’re at it, many employees opt to pedal to a nearby pool for
swimming. Additionally, workers can take advantage of the fitness
facility, weekly classes, and abundance of fresh fruit–all of which is
free!

American Specialty Health

This health- and wellness-plan provider practices what it preaches. American Specialty Health workers have access to a workout room located right on the
corporation’s scenic San Diego campus, where they hold exercise classes.
Telephone health coaching and smoking cessation programs are also on
the menu. Not to mention employees and their spouses can earn up to $150
a quarter for hitting specific physical activity goals, like walking a
certain number of steps, as monitored with a pedometer.

Rodale, Inc.

Rodale’s
Pennsylvania-based office is equipped with a fitness center, complete
with regular classes. Staffers regularly hit the nearby trails for
lunchtime runs and bike rides, and everyone can fill up on healthy foods
in the on-site organic eatery.

GENENTECH (10,890 employees) South San Francisco
From the moment you walk onto the grounds, the Genentech headquarters
feels like a bucolic college campus, complete with employees bicycling
between the company’s buildings. And like any good college, it also has a
grand legacy. Rumor has it that the Genentech campus, with its
concierge services and its weekly Friday afternoon party, was the
inspiration for other employee-friendly companies in the Silicon Valley
to start creating workplaces that emphasize fitness and happiness.
Genentech is also an innovator when it comes to healthy dining,
employing a team of nutritionists who are constantly working to refine
the quality and healthiness of the gourmet fare offered to workers each
day.

AMERICAN SPECIALTY HEALTH (600 employees) San Diego
You’d expect that a company known for designing corporate wellness
programs would get it right when it comes to a healthy workplace.
American Specialty does not disappoint. Think of its wellness program as
a model of what can be done at any company. ASH headquarters is a
junk-food-free zone. Two years ago the company removed all junk food
from vending machines, (what we should do in our pantrys!)replacing the contents with healthy snacks,
including dried fruits, nuts, and whole-grain energy bars. Complimentary
fresh fruit is always available, and employees can opt to sit on Swiss
balls at their computers (improving their posture and core strength
while they work). An exercise
rewards system provides cash back for working out, either in the
on-site gym or at an outside facility. A team of registered dietitians,
nurses, and certified fitness trainers serve as telephone-based health coaches to create personalized
healthy-living plans for employees. And each year, the employee who
makes the biggest overall health and lifestyle change even wins an award for his or her efforts.

AMERICAN CAST IRON PIPE COMPANY (3,000 employees) Birmingham, Ala.
If you think it’s hard to keep office workers fit, just try it in a
factory: Two-thirds of the employees working for this family-owned
plumbing-supply manufacturer are plant workers. Yet despite having
strenuous physical jobs, they still find plenty of time for fitness. One
possible reason: ACIPCO has an extensive incentive program that
encourages working out, better nutrition, and healthy living.
The company is also trying to slim down together. Its yearly Belly
Busters competition pits about 30 teams against each other to shed
pounds. During the holiday season, members make it a goal to maintain
weight rather than gain it, doing weekly team weigh-ins to ensure that
everyone stays on track. In the program’s first year, 90 people lost a
collective 300 pounds. This year, 120 employees signed up. The company’s
wellness-center programs are also available to employees’ families, and
employees can continue with them after retirement.

WHEELER INTERESTSVirginia Beach, Va.

When this real-estate development firm was ready for
new headquarters, CEO John Wheeler—a self-proclaimed fitness
junkie—decided to design the facility himself, with the goal of creating
a space that could foster better health for his employees. The layout
of the new building, which opened last fall, spread necessary facilities
as far apart as possible, forcing employees to walk as much as
possible. An on-site, state-of-the-art gym, not typical for a company
this small, was also a vital part of the design. The fitness center is
free for employees and offers complimentary yoga, massages, physical
therapy, and personaland performance-training sessions from two on-staff
trainers. Even more impressive: The building was built on a Lynnhaven
River tributary, giving employees access to kayaking, canoes, and other
water sports.

HERBALIFE (3,800 employees) Los Angeles
Herbalife proves that given the right support, anyone can get fit. A
big sponsor of triathlons, the herbal supplement company also offers
on-site triathlon training— including swimming clinics—and time for its
employees to train during the day. This emphasis has so far convinced
more than 2,000 employees to complete a triathlon, many of whom had
never done anything requiring that level of fitness.

CHICK-FIL-A (1,700 employees)Atlanta
Who says fast food is bad for your health? Chick-fil-A encourages
healthy living from the top down. A favorite topic for President Dan
Cathy is fitness and health. A marathon runner himself, Cathy constantly
challenges those working for him to embrace a fit lifestyle. He
believes a successful leader has to make his or her own health a
priority and challenge those he or she leads to do the same. To that
end, the company has a 15,000-square-foot on-site fitness center, which
is huge considering that only 500 of its 1,700 employees work in the
corporate office. The fitness center gets more than 200 visits a day,
all the more impressive considering that across corporate America, only
15% of employees use their company gyms. For employees who spend their
workdays on the road, Chick-fil-A has even created a business traveler’s exercisekit, which includes an exercise band and a manual of exercises that are easy to do in hotel rooms. In
addition to regular 5K and one-mile races within the company, last year
Cathy challenged employees to join him in running the Disney marathon in
Orlando, offering free employee training for six months. Two hundred
workers took him up on the offer.

PEPSICO (4,200 employees) Purchase, N.Y.
The corporate parent of Pepsi, Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Tropicana, and Quaker Oats, Pepsico offers a fitness programdriven by the belief that “healthier employees are more productive and
satisfied,” says Lynn Markley, head of company wellness. To get
employees on board, the company’s 12,000-square-foot fitness center is
open 24-7 and offers everything fromyoga to Pilates, specialty fare like tango, in-line skating, and tae kwon
do. Towel and laundry service for exercise clothes is available to make
working out between meetings easier. Facilities also include sand
volleyball, tennis and basketball courts, a lap pool, racquetball/squash
courts, an outdoor running course and a softtrack. At lunch, a
recurring seminar series emphasizes a holistic approach toward health
with sessions on herbal remedies, anti-stress techniques, acupuncture,
and other forms of Chinese medicine.

VERIZON WIRELESS (65,000 employees) Basking Ridge, N.J.

This cell phone company knows what it means to surround its employees
with healthy-living choices—offering 28 on-site health and wellness
centers in its various offices across the U.S. Each of those gyms
contains cardio and strength-training equipment; spinning studios; group
exercise classes that offer aerobics, Pilates, outdoor boot camp, and
kickboxing, plus massage-therapy facilities. Oneon- one personal
training and individual nutrition counseling from on-staff fitness
coaches are also available. The Verizon Wireless intramural league
includes softball, volleyball, soccer, biking, running, and walking
teams. “Helping our employees get fit and healthy is a competitive
advantage,” says Martha Delehanty, vice president of human resources.
“It reduces our absenteeism rate as well as our presenteesim—our
employees are more engaged when they are at work because their bodies
feel good.”

SABRE HOLDINGS (4,200 employees in the U.S.) Dallas

Last year Sabre, which counts Travelocity among its brands, saw its
health-care costs increase only 1% (the nationwide average was 9%). Its
secret? A companywide health-and-wellness program, in which more than
80% of its U.S. employees participate. The program started in 2004 and
includes fitness, nutrition, stress relief,and weight-loss challenges,
all of which have created a noticeable shift in attitude among workers.
“It’s wild. I walk around here, and people are thinner,” says benefits
manager Matt Robbins, who oversees the wellness program but has yet to
tire ofthe “you changed my life” e-mails from employees. “Everyone is
looking more healthy,” he says. Online surveys track employee habits,
determine where their biggest risks healthwise are, and offer
recommendations on specific company wellness offerings. (One popular
option: Active Release Techniques, twice-weekly sessions with a
chiropractor to treat soft tissue damage.) Aggregate results of those
surveys allow the company to determine which areas its employees need
help in and then tailor programs accordingly. For instance, the surveys
found that there are fewer smokers at Sabre than at other companies and
nationally, but extra pounds were a particular problem. Rather than
pouring its resources into smokingcessation programs, Sabre now
concentrates on weight-loss efforts.

TEC LABORATORIES (42 employees) Albany, Ore.

If you want face time with the CEO of this midsize pharmaceutical
company—and possibly the chance to put your career on the fast
track—you’d better pull on your running shoes. Tec boss Steve Smith is
an avid outdoorsman and marathon runner and welcomes employees at any
level of the organization to join him for his regular run on Tec’s
campus trails during lunch. When the company built the new headquarters a
few years ago, it included on-site basketball courts after finding out
that one-third of its employees play the game.

Weare off for our annual family ski trip! We will be skiing for a couple of weeks at Whistler, BC.

We will continue to blog over the next couple of weeks, while enjoying a family ski trip to Whistler. We may blog about restaurants, outings, or our family dinners in, we don't know? It's always an adventure with our family!!Cheers!JJ and Amy

2 comments:

Sorry Scott! I just saw this!! Options for you, if you are happy at your company, is to start a group, that goes for a walk before, after or during lunch time. Or, talk to your company about paying partially for a gym membership or even putting in a basketball hoop. Thanks for commenting! Cheers! JJ